The State Fair wrapped up this weekend. Lincoln puts up a huge fuss any time anybody dares mention the possibility of: 1) dismantling the Fair; or 2) moving the Fair out of Lincoln. And yet while the Fair is actually in town, Lincolnites ignore it. I can't think of a single friend, family member, or acquaintance who went to the Fair this year. I take that back, I know of five guys who went: the members of No Better Cause. I wonder if they actually performed in front of anybody?
The State Fair is an anachronism, a money pit, a miserable shell of a past reality kept on life support by taxpayers who know the Fair for what it was, not for what it is. Lincolnites foolishly want to keep the Fair in town because it brings in a few tax dollars each year. Psh. You want tax dollars? Turn the Fair Grounds over to real estate developers. They'll bring in tax dollars. Millions and millions and millions of tax dollars.
But no. We want our corn dogs and funnel cakes. 'Tis a shame.
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But what is strange is that while our state fair struggles, across the river it flourishes.
Move it out to GI. Less of a traffic hassle on gameday.
Yep. Have never gone before and people always say “It sucks don’t go.” I used to go to the Minnesota State Fair all the time in St. Paul, pretty much all throughout my early childhood through high school when I finally left. It was always crowded, with great games and rides, food galore, and musical acts that were a step above the usual “state fair circuit.”
Where did Nebraska fall down here? I would have thought that a state fair would be great here.
I’ve never been to the state fair and not being a lifetime lincoln native, I really can’t speak to how big the fair was back in the 80’s when I was a kid. And I really don’t know what they’ve failed but it isn’t working whatever it is. I really don’t think they’d have on this or next year had they not got the lottery money.
I loved the fair when I was 10 years old but now I go once every 5 or 6 years and bitch about how expensive everything is and vow never to go again. GI or Kearney is a much better place for it.
David Foster Wallace’s account of his trip to his home state Illinois State Fair for Harper’s that was included in his book “A Supposedly Fun Thing I’ll Never Do Again” is hysterical and dead-on.
Actually, No Better Cause had a great audience that night, surprisingly enough.
That’s good to hear. It’s always nice to see homegrown musicians do well. And, snide comments about its relevance aside, it’s nice to hear about any sort of a crowd gathering at the State Fair.
Agreed. Actually, I agree with all of your points about the State Fair. I can remember having a blast there when I was a little kid. But, it has become a pretty sorry event year in and year out for awhile now.
I’m actually a member of No Better Cause (if you haven’t figured that out yet). I found your website because the No Better Cause site stats showed that there was a link coming from here, so I decided to check it out. Thanks for the link, by the way. It’s much appreciated.
We’ve been at the fair for the past three years, and this was the first year that we’ve actually had a decent audience. The two previous years were a waste of time for us due to the lack of promotion (and I’m sure there were a lot of acts who felt the same way we did). Everything behind the scenes seems to be very disorganized with them, and doesn’t seem like there is a lot of effort to make it a big event anymore. We were basically there because they paid us to be there. But, this year was OK, for us anyway.
I enjoy your posts. Keep ‘em coming!
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